Rhade laid Beka on the cot, resisting the urge to check her pulse for the hundredth time. He'd taken her back to the bar at a sprint and demanded some kind of accommodation. The bartender hadn't argued; he could see the state Beka was in, but all he had to offer was a storage room in back with a cot and some blankets. He'd been concerned enough to bring a basin of water into the room for them and offer to send for a doctor, but Rhade had declined. Trance was the best doctor he knew, and he wanted Beka to wake up to friendly faces.

A movement on the cot startled him. Beka was trying to sit up, her bloody fingers scraping against the rough material.

"Don't do that," Rhade said gently, taking her shoulders and guiding her back down. "Just relax. I'm gonna call Trance, okay?"

"No!" Beka grabbed his hand as he reached for the com. "I don't want to see her."

Rhade sat on the edge of the cot and stroked her hair soothingly. "You're very badly injured. You need medical attention."

"I just need to sleep." Rhade reached for the com again.

"Please, I can't deal with any of them right now."

Rhade took a wet cloth from the basin and began wiping away the blood that had trickled down her face, smoothing her hair back with his other hand. "Your feet are a mess." Beka swatted his hands away and stifled a sob. "What are you doing here, Rhade?'

"Saving your life."

"Why?"

"Because you're my friend."

"No, I'm not," Beka answered. "We both know that."

Rhade couldn't argue with that. They'd never gotten along- not even before they'd crash-landed on Seefra. But even so…. "I care what happens to you," Rhade admitted. "You saw me kill those men, right? I did that for you."

Tears began to fall from Beka's eyes, mingling with the blood on her face. "It's okay," Rhade murmured, whipping them away with his hand. "Sit up." He drew her to him, letting her lean on him as she struggled to sit up, then placed her feet inside the basin, feeling her shiver and holding her more closely. "We'll let your feet soak for a little while, okay?"

Beka buried her face in his shoulder. "I don't think my own brother cares what happens to me. Why should you?"

"I don't know." He started cleaning her hands so he could bandage them. He'd never noticed how tiny they were until he was holding them, trying to wipe away the blood that had crusted onto them.

"You don't know?"

"I don't need a reason, okay?" he snapped, laying her back on the cot so he could bandage her feet. He managed to clean and dress all her wounds before the silence got to him. "Beka?"

Her head was turned and she was staring at the wall.

"You okay?"

"My head is too small for my skull."

Rhade reached down and stroked her hair back, noting the big bruise near her temple and the cut along her hairline. "It's not too serious," he assured her. "Just close your eyes." He continued to stroke her hair, his fingers gently caressing her skin just lightly enough for her to feel it but not hard enough for it to hurt. When she fell asleep, he grabbed the com and called Trance.

TBC